Catch Me
by Don't Forget About Me
Summary: A series of one shots, stating the facts on everyone's minds: Cammie left. She was gone. Now she's back. And the top question of the CIA: Where's the Circle? Follow our favorite crew as they live the little parts of their lives Ally forgot to mention. From Rome to Graduation. From heart-to-hearts to hurtful memories. All the way to expecting the unexpected. "Catch Me -If you can."
1. Eyes Open

_**Eyes Open**_

[Based on the song written by Taylor Swift]

_Keep your eyes open._

I looked around trying to survey the area. I checked my surroundings and continued to walk down the road. Something's not right. Someone's here. I can sense it. I can feel it.

I can see it.

_Keep your eyes open. _

I remember just a few months ago, when I was still safe, when I was still at Gallagher, hatching this plan in my dorm room. Visiting the pigeons with Zach.

I remember that, back then. When I had family. When I had a home. When I was safe.

When I was Cameron Morgan._  
_

_Keep your eyes open._

I've had nightmares everyday this week, nightmares of the Circle killing everyone I loved. Mom. Abby. Bex. Liz. Macey. Mr. Solomon.

Zach.

Then I had the nightmare where I was playing in my backyard with my dad. We were playing Castle, like we used to. Then two men came behind him, grabbing him by the arms, pulling him away, ignoring my pleads and screams.

I woke up screaming that night.

_Keep your eyes open._

I've been moving to a new home every night. I couldn't stay in the same place for too long. They could easily find me. They could take me. They could get answers out of me –then kill me.

I couldn't even sleep without being scared for the safety of my life.

I stayed with Preston for a few days. He gave me a home. I can see why Macey liked him, he was very nice to me. He didn't ask questions when I asked him to come with me to the piazza so I could borrow some money and pick up a few things for my friends on my little "vacation." Even though he already knew it was everything but. Even though he knew I was a spy. Even though he knew I went to spy school.

I walked up to a lady selling jewelry, Preston standing a few feet away.

"_Mi scusi_?" I asked her. She looked at me surprisingly.

"_Tu parli italiano? Sei americano?_"

"_Sì, io parlo italiano. E sì, lo sono."_

"_Meraviglioso, signorina!Come posso aiutarla_?" she asked kindly. She was a very kind old lady.

"_Posso preghiamo di acquistare questi splendidi braccialetti_?" I asked, referring to the bracelets showcased behind her. She nodded tenderly and a smile broke out of her face.

"_Naturalmente, piccola principessa! Tu sei molto bello_."

"_Grazie. Quanto costerà_?" I asked her. Preston reached for his wallet.

"_Quante volete_?"

"_Vorrei tre. Hai collane_?"

"_Sì, sì! Non volete che i vostri braccialetti personalizzati_?"

I nodded and scrambled for a piece of paper and a pen. "_Sì, grazie_." I said as I wrote down three names and handed them to her.

"_Oh, questi bei nomi. Dovrebbe essere pronto in un attimo. Sono molto veloce a fare braccialetti_." She said as she hurried to her little workshop in her cart. I smiled and walked over to the necklace section of the cart to find something for Mom and Abby. I picked two beautiful pedants with leather band and a wired charm, looking identical to the bracelets shown but with no names.

"_Tutto finite_!" the woman said, coming back not a second later. I looked at the bracelets she had handed me and ran my finger over them.

"_Sono belle_." I whispered. "_Grazie_."

"_Di niente, caro. Tornerai in autunno? E 'molto bello poi_." She said to me. I smiled up at her.

"_Forse, ho la scuola allora. Spero di sì_." I said as I handed her the money for the bracelets and necklaces.

"_Oh, sì. Scuola. Bene, signorina, arrivederci. Avere un meraviglioso viaggio_." She said with a smile.

"_Grazie. Avere un giorno meraviglioso_!" I said to her.

"_Si, si. Grazie_. Good-bye, _signorina_. Thank you for coming." She said, her English a bit broken and added with Italian.

I left the shop with Preston and went to the mailing center to ship the package to Mr. Solomon's cabin and continue my "trip".

_Keep your eyes open. _

Preston was gone. His father was gone. I was walking down the lone alley back to find another hotel to stay in, when someone came up behind me. I swung around and kicked their face. The figure punched my stomach. _Hard. _I grunted, but kept fighting. My heel scraped his face as I swung again, using my best defense, my legs, as my weapon. He grabbed it in the air and flipped me over. I jumped back up and felt someone grab my hands from behind me. I kneed them in a very hurtful place and watched them fall to the ground. Soon I was surrounded.

_Keep your eyes open. _

It was only me. There was no other person here. There were no teachers watching on surveillance. There was no comms unit in my ear, having Mr. Solomon tell me what to do. There was no secret boyfriend to come in with a forklift and "save me." There was no almost-sorta-complicated assassin to blow up the place to save me from dying, almost killing himself in the process. There were no Gallagher Girls there to serve back-up.

This wasn't a test.

This was _real._

This was what Mr. Solomon and all of Gallagher's teachers had been training me for. This was my time to prove myself.

Only I didn't know it would come so soon.

_Keep your eyes open.  
_

"Get her! We cannot lose her again!" an all-too familiar voice said. I kept fighting. Blows were hitting my side, kicks were aiming for my face. I kept fighting. I wish Bex was here. I wish Macey was here.

Heck, I wish _Liz_ was here.

Wait. I take that back. They're safe. They're somewhere. They're not coming.

That made all the difference.

Keep your eyes open.

I kept fighting through all of the pain. I was bleeding in multiple places, and there were bruises all over my body. Rags riddled with drugs were thrown at me, but I fought them off. _  
_I had to. If I didn't… well, that was something I didn't want to think about.

_Keep your eyes open._

"Oh, Cameron dear. Just give up now. You're not going to win." Ms. Goode said as I fought off her goons. I fought harder and she laughed.

"Oh. A fighter. Just like her father. Too bad he's dead." She said coldly. Tears ran down my face. But I kept fighting.

"I'm getting tired of watching this. She's going to die if I don't kill her first! You." she said, pointing to a buff man standing by her, waiting for his turn to fight. "Finish her off."

He reached in his back pocket and pulled out a gun. Not a regular gun. A gun with medical shots in it –not bullets. A napotine gun.

He aimed it for me. I kept fighting, hoping for the best.

_Keep your eyes open._

Two seconds later, a sharp pain struck my arm. I fell to the ground, my legs numb. I screamed and screamed. I was full-on sobbing now. Something I swore never to do –but the pain was too much for me to handle.

"Oh, Cameron. No use crying. Just go to sleep. I promise everything will be alright soon enough." She said in a faux-motherly voice. One of the men picked me up and threw me into a black truck sitting by the road.

_I can't sleep, _I thought. But sleep was overcoming me. I couldn't. I couldn't sleep. My eyelids draped over. I tried to open them as I heard Ms. Goode cackle in the distance.

C'mon, Cammie!

_Keep your eyes open._

* * *

**Translation. **

"Excuse me."

"You know Italian? Are you American?"

"Yes, I do speak Italian. And yes I am."

"Wonderful, miss! How can I help you?"

"Can I please buy these beautiful bracelets?"

"Of course, little princess! You are quite beautiful."

"Thank you. How much will it cost?"

"How many would you like?"

"I would like three. Do you have necklaces?"

"Yes, yes! Do you want your bracelets custom?"

"Yes, please."

"Oh, such beautiful names. Should be ready in one moment. I am very fast at making bracelets."

…

"All finished!"

"They're beautiful. Thank you.

"Thank you, darling. Will you come back soon, in autumn? Its beautiful then."

"Maybe, but I have school then. I hope so."

"Oh, yes. School. Well, signorina (which means miss or darling and what not), goodbye. Have a wonderful trip."

"Thank you. Have a wonderful day!"

"Yes, yes. Thank you. Goodbye, signorina. Thank you for coming."

**And that's what I thought happened in Rome. **

Authors Edit in: hi all. I know. No song lyrics. Well, I got a review saying someone would report me if I didn't follow the rules word for word. So I'm taking hours out of my time to "fix it" so I won't get reported. Yeah. The whole "keep your eyes open." Thing every five seconds? That's where the lyrics used to be. Sorry. Bye all.

Love you. 3


	2. Forever Sisters

**Forever Sisters**

_Bonded together by fate, for life. _

* * *

Cammie walked down the halls of Gallagher. She would miss them. She would miss these walls, these halls that she called home. She would miss the secret passageways, the delicate frames and beautiful wood carvings.

She would miss everything.

In just three hours, Cameron Morgan would be graduating from the Gallagher Academy. She'd be moving onto a new life of working for the CIA. It would be different. It would be dangerous.

It wouldn't be the same.

She remembered walking down these halls in the seventh grade, when everything seemed so new and breathtaking. She remembered crying in the passageways, missing her father, and her home in Washington D.C., back when everything was normal.

Now she wouldn't change her experiences for anything.

_What about my friends? _She wondered as she kept roaming down the halls. Her closest friends, Bex, Liz, and Macey… she had no idea where they'd go, what agency they'd work for.

Bex would probably go for MI6, moving halfway across the world. Cammie wouldn't see her for a while.

Liz would probably be accepted to a CIA lab, then maybe Cammie would see her sometimes. That would be good.

Macey… Cammie had no idea what Macey would do, what agency she would go for. Macey turned out to be an amazing spy, and if that doesn't work out, she has so much more going for her. Cammie had no idea what she'd do.

And Zach… those questions would never be answered. Why bother now? He'd always find a way back to Cammie, and she would always find a way back to him.

Cammie explored the first passageway she'd ever found. Probably for the last time. A sad tear slid from her eye as she sat down, getting her already-stained skirt even more dirty. She would miss this uniform, and all of its stains on the butt. No matter how embarrassing they were when Blackthorne came sophomore year.

Thirty minutes later, it was time for Cameron Morgan to go get ready for the ticket to her fate. She walked back into her dorm room, admiring all of the little details of Gallagher, all of the ways to her dorm, all of everything. She would miss it all.

She opened the door to see Macey fighting with Bex over which shoes she should wear, and little Liz typing away on her laptop. She sighed, thinking about how much she would miss this.

"Hey," they all greeted. Cammie smiled, once again hiding her saddening emotions. She turned to Liz. "Shouldn't you be getting ready, Lizzie?"

"All I have to do is put on my dress, and I just have to finish this little report…" Liz said. Cammie looked at her page count. Sixteen.

Oh so "little".

Cammie rolled her eyes and made her way to the closet, pulling out a dress her mother had picked out for her. She hadn't gotten a chance to look at it until now. She pulled off the plastic covering and slipped it on. With an a zip-up from Bex and a smooth-out from Macey, she opened her eyes, revealing to herself a lovely dress, silk in fabric, blue in color. It matched her forever-changing eyes and dark blonde hair, fitting her figure and perfecting her curves. She awed at her reflection for a moment before slipping on some awfully blistering but delicately enchanting silver heels that strapped around her feet. She admired Bex in her beautifully fitting dark green dress and golden heels that made her look tough, yet elegant and bewitching. Her hair lay in ringlets at the top of her head, a graceful bun that only she could pull off, accompanied by a golden hair clip that matched her stunning heels.

Cammie turned to Macey, who was pulling out a straightening iron from under her bed. She was embellished in a gorgeous scarlet dress that showed off her fiery personality. She had on charming black heels that gave her the look of ravishing and classy young woman. Her hair was pinned back, leaving wisps of bangs to frame her face. Her hair was straight as usual, but glossy as ever. Her low amount of make-up and breathtaking style decorated her personality. She looked simply statuesque.

Macey walked over to Cammie, who had asked Macey before-hand to style her hair for her.

"You look wonderful, you know." She assured her. Cammie looked up. Macey smiled. "You're going to be great tonight, Cam. We love you, okay?" Macey said, referring to the long speech Cammie had to give for being Valedictorian.

"Okay." Cammie replied. Macey smiled thinly. She could hear the lies in Cammie's voice, but choose to ignore it as she pulled Cammie's hair back into a side ponytail and held it together with a silver rhinestone hair clip similar to Bex's. While she straightened out the ends, Cammie glanced at Liz from the corner of her eye.

Petite Liz was clothed in a soft white dress that glittered if you were under lights and looked hard enough. It complemented Liz's pixie figure and made her look a bit taller. She wore leather sandals with beads in them, making her look flowy and delicate. Her light blond hair sparkled as it graced her head, looking wavier than usual. A white and silver butterfly headband dressed her head. She looked simply gorgeous.

When the girls where finished being mascara-ed and eyeliner-ed, the exited the room and made their way down the Grand staircase together, not uttering a word as they approached the door. They looked at each other for the last time as high schoolers, but forever sisters. Forever Gallagher Girls. They all held out their wrists, showing a drawn heart in permanent marker, forever bonding them.

They looked at each other once more. They were all elements of their friendship.

Bex was earth. She held them together.

Macey was fire. She lit up their world.

Liz was air. She kept them all breathing.

Cammie was water. She kept them alive.

They would always be Gallagher Girls. Forever sisters. They closed their eyes, sharing the telepathical message. Cammie reached for the door. She opened the wooden piece as the bright light glowed and the whole world slowed down, watching the elements enter. They stepped in, Bex shutting the door behind them, closing in their fate.

They maybe shutting the door, but they will leave nothing behind.

* * *

Review? :)


	3. We'll Find Her

**Disclaimed!(:**

**A one-shot for Catch Me**

Titled: We'll Find Her

_**Main Characters: Bex and Rachel**_

Rebecca Baxter sat on her bed in her now-empty dorm. She wiped the tears away from her eyes and stared at the bed next to hers, which had been person-less for about two weeks four days nineteen hours and forty six minutes.

It was Cammie's.

Bex's mood quickly changed from sadness to anger. She started throwing punches to the foam punching bag she had moved to the corner of her room. She didn't stop.

She punched and kicked until her knuckles bled, her shoe was torn, and her feet killed.

She didn't stop.

She yelped in pain when the bag's fabric ripped, slicing her hand open in a stroke. But she didn't stop.

Finally, a gentle but firm hand was placed on her shoulder. She quickly spun around and roundhouse-kicked the figure, but her leg was caught in the middle of the action. Bex fell on the ground. She looked to see the attacker.

Rachel Morgan.

Rachel's eyes where soft and watery, rimmed red from crying. She was thinner than usual. She hadn't been eating. She had bags under eyes and looked incredibly tired. She wasn't sleeping.

Then again, Bex hadn't been doing either of those things either. Expect for the crying.

"Headmistress." Bex said. She quickly got up and wiped the dust off of the shorts she was wearing.

"Hello, Rebecca." Rachel said as she took Bex's hands in her own. Bex winced and pulled them back. "Bex. Let me see them." Rachel ordered. Even _Bex _couldn't defy the great power that was Rachel Morgan. She bit her lip as Rachel held the bloody hands in her own. Rachel examined them, and then set them down.

"Don't touch a thing," she ordered Bex. "I'll be back in a second." Rachel left the room for a quick minute and returned with a first aid kit. Bex hadn't moved.

"Okay. Sit down." She ordered again. Bex did as she was told, taking a seat on the nearest bed.

Cammie's.

She didn't realize. And surprisingly, neither did Rachel.

"Let me see those hands." Rachel said to Bex. Bex held out her hands to her. She opened the kit and started dabbing Rubbing Alcohol on her hands. Bex shut her eyes tight and clenched her jaw, feeling the sting. Her teeth grinded together.

After Rachel finished, she tried to bandage Bex's hands. Bex pulled them away again.

"You can't do that!" Bex cried, her accent thick with fury. "I won't be able to fight with it on!"

"Rebecca, that's the point."

"Please, Headmistress! You can't do this! Please!" Bex pleaded. "I need to fight –I _need_ to. I need to practice! Please! I can't find her if I don't practice! Please."

"Bex, you can't find her alone." Rachel said softly.

"But I can! I can find her. I know I can." Bex shouted. Tears were running down her face. "I _need_ to find her. Please." She whispered.

"Rebecca –"

"You should've found her already. But you don't have hope. You don't have hope of finding her." Bex cried. "You think she'll disappear."

Rachel's guard was temporarily let down as she cried into her hands. "But what if she does? What then?"

"Ms. Morgan… Cammie won't just disappear. She wouldn't do that. I promise." Bex said. "I _know." _

"Bex… I just can't do this. I don't know why she did this." Rachel cried. "_I don't know why_!" she screamed. She flew from her seat and punched the bag, sending it flying out of its place and knocking over a desk lamp. It fell to the ground, breaking one of Macey's forgotten compacts on the way. Foundation flew all over the floor, scattered with broken mirror pieces.

"Ohmygoodness, I'm so sorry. I have no idea what came over me...really, Rebecca. I apologize for my unexplainable actions. That was not necessary and inappropriate." She apologized.

"It's okay." Bex said. Rachel sat back down. Bex willingly handed over her hands, allowing Rachel to bandage them.

"Answers… she said she wanted answers." Rachel mumbled. "What kind of answers? Answers on the Circle? Answers on Matthew?" She looked to Bex, who was just as confused as she was.

"I don't know. I wish…I wish she would've at least taken _someone._ It didn't even have to be me. It could've been Zach. It could've been Macey. Psh, I would be a little less worried if she had taken Liz!" Bex said.

"Zach, maybe Zach knows something. I hate to admit it…but Zach _always_ knows something." Rachel admitted.

"I wish Zach knew something, but he doesn't. I mean, honestly Headmistress, if Zach knew something, do you think he would still be here?" Bex questioned.

"No." She sighed. "Did you read over the reports? Any trace of a hint? A clue? _Something_?"

"Nothing. Just…just nothing." Now it was Bex's turn to sigh in defeat.

"Headmistress?"

"Yes, Rebecca?" she answered.

"Do…do you think she's g-gone? Forever?" Bex asked. At that moment, Bex wasn't _Bex._ She wasn't strong, she wasn't tough as nails, she wasn't the girl who wanted to destroy everything in her path and look good while doing it. She was small. She was weak. She was vulnerable. And she was mad –mad at Cammie for making her like this. At that moment, Bex showed the little vulnerability, naivety, the small drop of _innocence_ she had left.

"No." Rachel answered, feeling the same. She felt small. She felt like this was a problem not even her gorgeous-headmistress-self could handle. And she was fuming –fuming at Cammie for making her like this. Rachel showed the unknowledgeable, faithful, tiny spice of _hope_ she had left.

"I know she'll come back." Rachel told her quietly. "Bex, I promise. We'll, we'll…"

"We'll find her."

* * *

So...what'd you guys think? Review?(:

Oh, and thanks to my beta, violets-are-violets for checking over it!(: Love you Ash!(: You guys should do me a favor and check her out(: Pretty awesome stuff(:

And check out maryclumsykatherine too! (This is random, but I'll try it! If you read this AN, but LOLLIPOPS in your review! It'll make my day!And I'll send you a teaser of a different one shot for this story! Or, your choice, you can pick a song for Stay With Me(: ) She is also my sister(; Love ya Mkat!(:

Bye!(:

-Sol(:

P.S. Did you guys like your teaser to My Secret Fidelity?(: If you have an account, read it, liked, then review! Teasers await!(;

P.P.S. Don't know if that {- is correct, but don't forget about the LOLLIPOPS for a teaser or song prompt!(:


	4. Bungee Rope and Static Annoyances

**Chapter Four**

_Bungee Rope and Static Annoyances_

* * *

"Oh, sure," Cammie says, dangling from the hanging from the helicopter above them. "Don't help me or anything. Just stand there and –"

"Okay, okay. Geez, Gallagher Girl. I'm trying," Zach replies as he tugs on her ankle and catches her when she lets go of the rope. "This is the last time we use a bungee cord."

"Agreed," Cammie sighs as she attempts to stand and steady herself but fails by accidently collapsing into the boy standing in front of her.

"Who knew you'd fall for me so quickly," he says with a smirk.

"Don't flatter yourself," she retorts. "I only tripped over a cord."

"_Guys!_"a static cry says, interrupting their bickering. "_Can we leave the flirty chit-chat for when we're done with this mission and back at Gallagher?_"

"My regrets, McHenry," Zach smirks. "You just know Cameron here can't get enough of me."

"_I don't think it's just Cameron._" A deeper voice mumbles.

"Grant, just shut up." Cammie rolls her eyes.

"_Just get in, get the file, and get out._" Macey says from the Comms unit. "_And make it in less than five minutes. I can't afford to get an F because you people were too busy engaging in 'playful banter'." _

"Alright, McHenry," Zach laughs as he tightly secures the bungee cord to the bar on the side of the building. He finds the end of it and ties it around himself and Cam.

"Don't drop me, okay?" she says playfully. "I wouldn't dream of it," he replies seriously.

They stand on the edge of the building, a bright orange cord laced tightly around them. Thirty feet below them is the windowsill where they should be landing. Cammie gasps at the view.

"You ready for this, Gallagher Girl?" Zach says, tightening his grip around her waist.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

And they jump.

* * *

**a/n .**

**so i'm thinking of making these with prompts and kind of shorter, so here was my trial run :) sorry for mistakes, i didn't feel like bothering my beta with 300 words. hahaha :) it was kind of dumb, but i thought you guys deserved at least _something_ to hold you over until i finish something nice i have for y'all. **

**review? :)? :(? **


	5. Fireworks and Picnic Blankets

**Chapter Five**

Fireworks and Picnic Blankets

* * *

"Cammie, Zach," Liz started. The whole gang was standing in a line, waiting for their assignments on what to get for the Fourth of July picnic they were having later on. "You'll get food and drinks."

Cammie smiled and soon enough, Zach was being pulled away to go to the market.

"Macey," she said, turning to the blue-eyed girl who'd been remarkably happier since the team had "rescued" her boyfriend, Preston. "And Preston," Liz added as an afterthought. Preston smiled. "You guys are set-up and decorations." They raced away as soon as Liz was finished.

Three people remained. "Jonas and I will find a place," Liz said while Jonas went off to start the car. "And Bex, you and Grant are in charge of…"

The two waited eagerly for something as Liz scrolled up and down her list, trying to find something they couldn't ruin, but failed. "Fireworks," she sighed. She already knew this was a disaster.

"Bloody awesome!" Bex yelled. Grant's eyes widened. "Wicked!" He screamed.

Liz watched as they ran off to the van in regret. She didn't just fear a disaster.

She was afraid they'd hurt themselves in the process.

* * *

Bex and Grant drove for a half an hour. "Are we there yet?" Bex complained.

It was just their luck that _no one_ in Roseville sold fireworks.

"Not yet, but almost." Grant said, trying to concentrate.

"Drive. Faster." Bex growled. "I'm getting hungry!"

"Geez, woman," Grant replied. "Don't get your panties in a bunch."

With Bex mumbling threats about getting someone's undergarments in a bad situation for the next fifteen minutes, Grant finally pulled into the store's parking lot.

"Finally!" Bex yelled, jumping out of the car. "Is there any bloody food here?"

"Bex, babe," Grant started. "It's a party store."

"Shoot me."

* * *

"Hi, can I help you?" the woman at the counter said. Grant leaned on the tabletop and she giggled.

Bex clenched her fists and pushed Grant out of the way. "Yes, you can." The girl rolled her eyes. "We're looking for fireworks."

"And possibly a cheeseburger," Grant added. "If available." He winked at Bex.

"We don't serve _cheeseburgers_," she said, eyeing Bex. "But fireworks are in the back."

Without another word, the two rushed off. Meters away, Bex stopped dead in her tracks.

"What?" Grant asked. "The fireworks are this way."

"I know where the fireworks are," she said, rolling her eyes. "I just wanted to know what the bloody hell you were doing _flirting _with that girl?"

He looked her straight in the eye. "Discount."

That wasn't something she could really argue with.

* * *

Five cases of fireworks, three bags of fast food, and two receipts with numbers on the back of them later, Rebecca and Grant were back in the car. Their mouths were stuffed with peanut-oil-free French fries, and the radio was turned up.

"_Here's an old one, requested by RihannaFan201!_" The voice from the radio said. The music started up. _"Remember, vote for your favorite songs on your website!_"

Bex turned the radio up. "_La la la la, la la la la oh. You know, I've never felt like this before._" She struggled to recognize it as Rihanna started singing. _"I'm obsessive, when just the thought of you comes up. And I'm aggressive…" _

"You like this song?" Grant asked. Bex just kept listening. _"'Cause every moment gone you know I miss you. I'm the question, and you're of course the answer. Just hold me close, boy, 'cause I'm your tiny dancer_."

"I haven't heard this in ages," Bex blurted finally, as Rihanna belted out the chorus. "It was one of my, uh, dance songs."

"Ah, I see," he replied. "It reminds me of you –I mean,uh, something you would like."

"Funny," Bex said finally. "I can really relate to it."

"_S.O.S., please someone help me._"

* * *

"We're back!" Bex sang, hopping out of car and stepping on the grass of the park Liz told them to meet at. "And we have explosives!"

"_Colorful_ explosives," Grant added excitedly.

"_Dangerous_ colorful explosives," Cammie said, placing her hand on her hip. Zach stood by her, bags of food in his hand. Cammie offered no help.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Bex rushed them. "Let's light these babies up!"

"Bex, no!" Liz exclaimed. "I, uh, I mean, it's not even dark yet. Let's get through eating first."

Bex and Grant looked at each other shamefully.

Maybe McDonald's _wasn't_ a good idea.

* * *

Three hours later, Grant and Bex sat on a picnic blanket. Their arms were crossed, angry because they weren't allowed to light the fireworks.

Macey and Preston fired up the first one. A magical array of fireworks exploded in the sky. Bex gazed up and smiled wide, remembering her times as a girl. Grant took this opportunity to put his arm around her, a motion Zach had already performed. Both Cammie and Bex graciously accepted.

"This is really beautiful," she whispered. "I _love_ fireworks. I wish we would've celebrated the Fourth in London."

"Well, you have us here Bexy."

"I know," she said quietly. "Thank you."

"Bex?" Grant said.

"Hmm?"

"Happy Fourth of July."

Bex smiled and snuggled closer to him. Her face was inches away from his. "Happy Fourth of July," she said before he pressed his lips to hers and pulled her closer. The loud thunder of fireworks remained in the sky.

All Bex could think was, _A very, v_ery_ happy Fourth of July._

* * *

**an. **

**so there you have it! my "Happy Independence Day" special :) So, I hope you had a great one, everyone. Let's take a few moments to remember the soliders who are fighting for our freedom, and even though we may not all agree with America's descision's at times, let's all be thankful and gracious. We have freedom and independence, we can thank God for that. **

**Happy Independence Day, all you American Ally-Lovers! (or, if you live where I live, it's 12:20 am, so. Haha, we can still celebrate!) And even if today wasn't a holiday in your country, I hope your day was spectacular anyway. **

**Enjoy the fireworks, everyone! **

**Review? :) **

**xoxo, **

**Sol **


	6. Pumpkin Guts and Halloween Candy

Pumpkin Guts and Halloween Candy

I walked out of my room, carrying two carving knifes wrapped in a towel. Macey was coming back from Study Hall, and she raised her eyebrows at me. "I thought you were going to "hang out" with Zach today," she started saying, uncovering knifes and smirking. "What's with the knives? Oh, this is for that knife fight thing in P&E, right?"

"We're not having a knife fight," I said, rolling my eyes. She stared at me with her icy blue eyes, trying to read me.

"Well, then…" She gestured towards the weapons and crossed her arms.

"We're carving pumpkins," I said a bit excitedly. "For my mom. She's gonna put them in the front of the gates. Make us look a bit friendlier to the public." I explained with a wink.

"Aw, Jack O' Lanterns?" She said. "That's cute. Let me know if you need any help. But I think you two have got it covered," she said, grinning mischievously. "Have funnnn." She winked at me before walking into our dorm and closing the door.

* * *

"Zach?" I said as I walked into an empty room filled with tables and a chalkboard. An old science lab. I looked around and saw a pile of pumpkins and candles sitting on a table. There were plastic buckets next to them.

"Hey, Gallagher Girl," Zach said. He came in behind me, carrying another bucket of pumpkins. He set them down next to the rest. "Okay, that's all the pumpkins I got from Joe," he said as I set my knife down at the table.

"Whoa, whoa." He said as I was unwrapping the knifes.

"Hmm?" I mumbled.

"Not cool. I had to bring three buckets of pumpkins and a bag of candles down here, and you brought two knifes?" He pouted. I put my finger on my chin and thought about it. Five seconds later, I shrugged.

"Eh. Life isn't very fair, if you think about it."

* * *

I scrunched up my nose at the smell of the guts as Zach took his knife and carved open the top of his first pumpkin. He steadily cut, slowly but surely, cutting open the pumpkin and taking off the top as I took off my watch and pulled my hair into a messy ponytail. I grabbed my pumpkin and started carving when something sticky and wet and just plain _disgusting _hit my arm. It was orange and it was gross.

It was pumpkin guts.

I looked up, utterly disgusted. Zach was pretty much on the floor, laughing his cocky, egotistical head off.

"Oh yeah, Blackthorne Boy?" I smiled deviously before reaching into his pumpkin shell and grabbing some of the disgusting goo, and throwing it at his face. He quickly stopped laughing and narrowed his eyes at me. I was giggling so hard.

Soon enough, we were covered in the goo. And only one pumpkin had been emptied. As a handful of goo was escaping my hand and aiming toward Zach's shoulder, the door opened. We froze in panic.

"Cameron, dear!" Madame Dabney exclaimed in a shocked expression. "And you, Zachary! Why, you two are covered in filth! What on earth is going on here?" She asked sternly. "You've made such a mess of yourselves!"

"Oh, um, hello Madame." Zach said, scratching his pumpkin-covered head. "We're just, uh, carving pumpkins for Headmistress Morgan and Jo –uh, Mr. Solomon."

"Well. You two are a mess," She said, turning up her nose and adjusting her glasses. "But have fun, alright? You may give any leftover pumpkin seeds to Chef to roast." She said before playfully shaking her head, smiling at us, and closing the door.

"Well… one pumpkin down." I said to Zach.

"And eleven to go." He responded, throwing one last piece of junk in my hair and smirking.

* * *

Nine pumpkins later, Zach and I were cutting out the eyes of the last two pumpkins.

"Once we're done," he started, his knife making its way towards a place for the nose, "We can put candles in all of 'em."

"'Kay. Are you almost done?" I said, grabbing a peak at his pumpkin.

"Yup. And you?"

Well. He was halfway through with the mouth. And I was on my first eye.

"Uh, not really." I said honestly with a laugh.

"Well you're in luck, Gallagher Girl." He said, finishing off his Jack O' Lantern's mouth. "I happen to be an expert pumpkin carver."

"Really now?" I challenged.

"Really." He confirmed.

He wasn't lying, that's for sure. He finished the pumpkin in the next five minutes, and it came out perfect.

"Eh, it's alright." I lied.

"All I get is an "alright"?" he said with a smirk. His eyes were extra bright that day, and his hair was shiny… well, as shiny as hair can get when there's pumpkin guts in it.

"Here, you can have this too." I said. I moved close to him as to give him a kiss on the cheek, but threw a handful of guts on his face instead. He mumbled some unkind words but laughed.

Soon enough, we were both on the floor, laughing our heads off again.

* * *

Once the pumpkins were outside and lit, and Zach and I had both cleaned ourselves off, my mother led Zach and I into the library area with the fireplace.

"And here's your reward," she said, playfully tossing a bag of M&M's on my lap and a bag of Snickers' on Zach's.

"_Yes_!" We both cried in unison. My mom shook her head at us and laughed.

"Well, if candy is all it takes, I'll have to get you two to do more decorating for me. Thanksgiving is coming up soon, and I was thinking –"

"Mother. Please. No." I begged. She smiled and sighed.

"Well, I suppose I can save it for another time." She grabbed an M&M from my bag before I could protest and popped it in her mouth. "Happy Halloween. Enjoy your candy."

* * *

"Happy Halloween, Blackthorne Boy." I said to Zach after my mom left.

"And happy Halloween to you too, Gallagher Girl."

* * *

**a/n: happy halloween everyone! (: I figured some Zammie would be a good thing. and if you don't celebrate halloween, i understand and i hope this didn't insult anyone. **

**I live on the East Coast, so i was hit by sandy, and i hope you all are safe and okay. i love you all, and try to enjoy this holiday, even if you may not be able to go trick-or-treating. i love you all :)**

**also, i hope you guys liked this. (: i haven't had school all week, and i won't have it for the rest of the week, so i was bored and missed you guys. probably more updates to come, loves. **

**bye for now, my lovely forget-me-nots(: **

**- Sol ;***


	7. Macey, Part 1

Chapter 7

* * *

Part I:

Evergreens and Scented Candles

* * *

"It smells like pine in here."

That was the first thing Macey said as she walked in the Senior common room. Her tiny, porcelain-like nose scrunched up in disgust. She hated the smell of pine. It messed with the scent of her new perfume. A girl doesn't get the newest Juicy perfume on an everyday basis, now does she?

Well, I suppose a girl like Macey McHenry did.

Macey McHenry, at first glance, would be the poster child for "Hot, Rich & Spoiled". But there was more to Macey than what you assumed. She definitely was what boys called "hot", what girls envied and called "rich", and what adults would call "spoiled" without a doubt. But she was so much more to that. She was helpful and kind, and somewhere, deep down, she had a little bit of holiday spirit. Somewhere.

Somewhere deep.

"Well, that's what Christmas trees smell like…" Cammie replied. "You'll get used to it."

Macey rolled her eyes and pretended not to care, but Cammie knew her better than that. Macey reminded Cammie of fire, hot and burning, stinging at the first touch, and once you touched it, you had learned your lesson. But fire was gorgeous at the same time, so beautiful and glowing and reminding of life.

But somehow, even with her fiery attitude, Macey seemed as cold and icy as her eyes. Something wasn't right at all.

* * *

"Everything all right, Mace?" Bex asked as she and Macey walked down the hall to their dormitory, leaving Cammie and Liz to decorate alone.

Macey hesitated, then shrugged, blaming it on Mother Nature and moving on. She then proceeded to sit on her bed, put on her headphones, and ignore everything but her newest copy of _Vogue_. Molecular Chemistry wasn't going to study itself.

But Bex, standing at the doorway with her arms crossed, knew that this attitude problem was, for once, not caused by PMS at all.

She just didn't know what it _was_ caused by.

* * *

Two days later, it was Christmas Eve, and Macey's attitude hadn't drifted. Snarky remarks hadn't failed to leave her mouth at all hours of the day.

Not before first period.

"Liz, would it be too much to ask that you don't leave your shoes by my bed? Thanks, it would be highly appreciated. Try to pick up your fairy wands, too. Don't want anyone to trip."

Or during lunch.

"This salad gets more disgusting each day I'm trapped in this lifeless excuse of a schooling establishment."

Or at P&E.

"I dare you to kick me once more, Tina. I guarantee you by the time I'm through with you; your hair will resemble Bozo the Clown's."

Or after dinner in the dormitory.

"I need to go shower away the filth of this awful day."

Before she could even walk into the bathroom, Bex exploded like a delayed bomb.

"What the bloody hell is your problem?" she asked Mace y in her no-nonsense tone.

"Excuse me? Who the hell are you to be questioning me like this, my mother?"

"And who the hell are _you_ to be treating everyone like a bloody piece of sh–"

"BEX!" Liz shouted before she could finish. "Please watch your language. Please."

"I wouldn't have to if some people would just…" Bex kept on talking, but Cammie had ignored her. She was sitting on her mattress, expressionless.

She needed to figure out what was wrong with Macey. Something wasn't right here. Something was very, very wrong.

* * *

Christmas morning approached more suddenly then anyone had expected. Soon enough, the four girls were gathered around their tree in the common room, opening gifts one by one. Macey's attitude had slightly improved, but for some reason, she wasn't herself.

"I honestly hate this smell," she finally exhaled, opening a drawer and pulling out a red candle and lighter. She lit the candle instantly, and it suddenly smelled of gingerbread, cinnamon, and Christmas spirit at the same time. It was heavenly. "Much better," she sighed.

Cammie, ripping the wrapping paper off of her new curling iron (not without the special spy aspects, of course, including a vile of explosion power hidden inside the metal barrel), turned to Macey, eyebrows raised. "Do you have something against Christmas trees?"

"Honestly?" she started, "Yes."

"Well," Bex prompted. "Out with it."

Macey bit her lip and sat down by the fireplace, as if preparing for a long tale. "When I was about seven years old, I had gone with my uncle to pick out a Christmas tree to cut down on the morning of Christmas Eve. My uncle's name was…," she trailed off, as if it pained her to mention him or the story at all. "Julian. Uncle Julian. I loved him to death. He was always there for me… the father I never had." She said, referring to her very alive father who was very dead to her.

"Anyway, we went looking for a tree. We found one. It was perfect and smelled of the purest pine. It even had fresh snow on it, and it was glittering from the coat of pure white that had covered it from the night before. It was the perfect tree." She said vividly, as if remembering it perfectly. The three girls waited patiently for her continuation.

"He was cutting it," she tried to say strongly. She was already choking up. "He had taken out his red ax and was cutting the tree down for our family. He warned me to move, but I had been mesmerized by it. It was falling. It was falling on me.

"He called my name, screamed it out. It was his last word before he pushed me out of the way and the tree fell," she started sobbing. "It fell right on him."

The only words Liz could utter were, "Oh, Macey."

* * *

**hi guys. Long time no see. Special thanks to my new bestie, short and simple for inspiring me with her wonderful spam of reviews. i adore when you all spam me with reviews. So, you may be wondering about the "part 1". there will be four parts to this, all revolving around Macey, Bex, Liz, and Cammie, from Christmas to New Years and everything in between. I know i ended this shot suddenly and sadly, but i promise things will get better for Macey. Also i wanted to get part 1 out before christmas was over. **

**Merry Christmas and Happy holidays guys! I hope your day was wonderful regardless what/or how you celebrate! :)**

**I hope this was a nice gift to all of you, much and patiently awaited. :)**

**Okay, I'm gonna write Part 2 now, sip hot chocolate, eat popcorn and go on pintrest because i don't have a life. :) Bye guys! **

**-Sol :)**


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